The advertising industry is at the precipice where it needs a fundamental mindset shift across the entire ecosystem of advertisers, agencies, and publishers, Vanita Rathore, senior director-global ad sales of Truecaller, emphatically stated at a recent panel discussion, underscoring the need to integrate purpose alongside speed, scale, and precision to harness technology's true potential.
The discussion was part of Cannes Homecoming; an initiative by Campaign India where India’s leading creative minds reflect, decode, and reframe the global trends witnessed at Cannes Lions through an Indian lens. It's more than a victory lap; it’s a forum for sharp introspection and future-facing dialogue.
This panel, presented by Truecaller, explored the intersection of technology and creativity in today’s AI-powered world, bringing together voices from across tech, brand strategy, and advertising to ask: what does it mean to stay human in a data-driven age?
Moderated by Vinita Bhatia, Editor, Campaign India, this conversation explored the role of technology in elevating creativity. Bhatia was joined on stage by a panel consisting of Vanita Rathore, senior director for global ad sales at Truecaller, Niraj Ruparel, creative tech lead at WPP; Jayesh Pandey, managing director, Global Network Accenture Song; and Vishal Sagar, director, brand and creative strategy of PocketFM.
Technology as an enabler, not just a tool
Rathore revealed that technology is no longer a support function, but part of the creative process. She, however, exhorted the power of human touch, adding that intuition and creative insight ensure relevance.“AI can churn out 100 messages, but can it deliver the right meaning? A successful campaign needs a synchronisation of tech and human empathy.”
Rathore also cautioned against letting artificial intelligence over-produce content without a cohesive voice. “It’s easy to lose brand essence when you’re generating on the fly,” she added, advising companies to be careful in the creative process from the start.
Niraj Ruparel reflected on his experience at Cannes this year, where AI wasn’t just a trend; it was the beginning of a creative and technological revolution. His answer was unequivocal when asked whether brands dare to commission truly innovative, tech-enabled work. “The goal is to create ecosystems that allow creative professionals to unleash their potential,” he said.
He cited several groundbreaking initiatives that put this philosophy into action. Ruparel spoke of campaigns such as Perfetti’s voice-enabled AI on feature phones used by people in rural areas or Britannia’s inclusive retail experiences for people with disabilities.
When asked about brands willing to champion meaningful work enabled by tech or just chasing quick clicks, Sagar acknowledged that it depends on trust and courage from both clients and agencies. “It’s up to agencies to instil confidence and help brands to be courageous,” he said.
According to Ruparel, agility and experimentation are key. He stressed the need to spot trends early and build momentum, even with limited budgets, to keep the clients warmed up to taking risks.
Pandey was pragmatic, emphasising that a compelling business case must back creative ambition. “Whether it’s about becoming more sustainable, saving costs, or aligning with consumer values, brands are more likely to act when the 360-degree value is clear,” he said.
He encouraged brands to take the long view: “Pure purpose may not deliver short-term ROI by traditional metrics, but it can yield long-term equity. The key is to map your resources accordingly and tell a complete story.”
Do not overlook privacy
Privacy must not be given a sidelong glance when integrating technology into the creative process, Vanita responded when Bhatia asked about the importance of privacy. “Creative professionals must ensure that their ideas not only inspire but also respect data boundaries, especially when campaigns are scaled across markets with diverse security regulations.”
Rathore called for industry-wide guardrails, pointing out that consent, transparency, and trust must be non-negotiable. “Yes, technology lets us scale creative output quickly, but we have to be privacy-first.”
Sagar said that the entire AI ecosystem needs to tackle the question of putting guardrails in place. He divided the AI ecosystem into three parts: engineers, infrastructure, and data.
“The most crucial component, data, is often scraped freely from the internet, whereas engineers earn millions and we invest billions in processing power,” he noted, pointing to recent controversies like the replication of Studio Ghibli’s art.
Sagar acknowledged the growing pressure on agencies and brands to ride the AI trend but urged caution: “Trends will come and go, but brands must outlast them. We are not for the trend; we are for the brand.”
Pandey chimed in by reminding the audience of the cost of technological disruption. “Every major innovation, from railroads to data mining, has outpaced legal and ethical frameworks initially. AI is no different,” he said, calling for patience and reflecting confidence in regulation and responsibility catching up in time.
Future of creative value
Pandey sees a clear opportunity amid the chaos. “AI has disrupted the non-creative parts of the value chain so dramatically that it frees up space, both time and budget, for real creativity. If creatives can claim that gap, align more deeply with brand purpose, and use tech to generate richer insights, they stand to reclaim significant value.”
He issued a rallying call: “Let the efficiency dollars flow back into creativity. That’s where the next breakthrough will happen, not just in tech-powered output, but in purpose-powered impact.”
When asked how creatives can reclaim the value that's drifting toward efficiency and automation, Pandey brought the conversation back to the essence of creativity: the power of a compelling message.
“Is my message moving someone? Does it impact human choice or emotion whether it's a line, a phrase, or a visual?” he said. Technology allows us to understand people in granular ways, even with all their messy, irrational, and inconsistent behaviours, he averred.
For Pandey, this is where creatives have a unique edge in the marketing value chain. “No one else is better positioned to bring that emotional intelligence to the table. The opportunity lies in leaning harder into that humanness, not away from it.”
Sagar echoed the thought, framing it as a call to action. “Tech is already doing what it does best: it's fast, scalable, and efficient. We need to be curious, courageous, and empathetic. We need to care about people’s lives and dare to take chances.”
Reimagining the agency model: Redefining the roles
Vanita Rathore noted that while some brands are beginning to integrate purpose with ROI, most are still at the tip of the transformation. The technology must move from being an afterthought to becoming a foundational part of systems, teams, and creative processes, starting with how new talent is trained and empowered.
She emphasised that agencies and organisations alike must build frameworks to operate at the intersection of tech, creativity, and purpose. “AI should empower, not replace. It’s about giving deeper meaning to messaging, not just faster output,” she said.
Pandey echoed this, pointing out that every role in the creative ecosystem will evolve, from planners to copywriters to strategists. He stressed that AI's true potential is unlocked when organisations break out of departmental silos and create repeatable, measurable systems that allow creatives to do what only humans can: be unpredictable, emotional, and intuitive.
Sagar cited Alibaba’s Singles Day success as a template for operationalising AI at scale: “Their AI-generated banners in 2018 alone would’ve taken 150 art directors 100 years to produce.” He urged agencies to outsource the repeatable and reclaim time for the meaningful, reframing AI not as a threat, but as a head start.
“Imagine an intern who gives you 100 rough ideas in response to a brief. Even if none work, you've a great head start,” he concluded.
The panel also discussed the evolving relationship between AI efficiency and human creativity, and the anxiety it has sparked within the industry. Sagar said that creatives shouldn't fear automation. He likened the current disruption to past revolutions: from Photoshop to TV ads, each wave demanded creative evolution, not resistance.
Pandey outlined a framework for the future of creative work:
- Human-in-the-loop: those who outsource repetitive tasks to AI but retain and enhance the human elements— emotion, originality, and judgment.
- Human-on-the-loop: evaluators and decision-makers who guide the process without doing the heavy lifting.
- And finally, those “out of the loop”, who fail to adapt and risk becoming irrelevant.
Vanita Rathore reinforced the idea that AI is only as powerful as the humans using it. “Inputs define the outputs,” she said, adding that while roles will shift, human intuition, insight, and evaluation will remain irreplaceable. The future, as per Rathore, belongs to those who understand how to create a synergy between algorithmic scale and human sensibility.
Prototype or perish: Calling India's next-gen creatives
Ruparel ended the session with a rousing call to action for students and young professionals: “Don’t pitch ideas, build prototypes.” This is because clients today want tangible, local solutions, not imported showreels from the West, he warned.
“AI shouldn’t just be smart; it should be accessible,” he stressed. “You have to show the client value at every level: show them the money, not just the muscle.”
Cannes Homecoming, organised by Campaign India, was co-powered by Truecaller, with Mercedes as the Luxury Partner, Pernod Ricard as the Conviviality Partner, NCPA as the Venue Partner and tgthr. as the Concept Partner.XXXXX
